ellybeans

Monday, 8 April 2013

Hello! So, today whilst doing my daily lip care routine, I suddenly decided to write a little post about lip care! This is sort of just me sharing what I do and sort of a product review... I'm a poet and I didn't know it. My lips looking and feeling soft and pretty is important to me and this is why I take the time to care for them. Let's be honest, caring for your lips isn't too much strenuous work, so why not take a couple of minutes out of the day to do it? (Rhetorical Question) My favourite products to use on my lips are the 'LUSH Bubblegum Lip Scrub' and 'Classic Carmex Moisturising Lip Balm'.

Lip Scrub and Lip Balm

I think the lip scrubbing part is important in order to achieve soft lips. So, for the lip scrub, I take a small amount and buff it all over my lips with my finger. The lip scrub is practically made of sugar so it dissolves into your lips quickly and you can lick the excess off (delicious!) before applying the lip balm. The lip scrub costs £5.25 and was from the LUSH shop. I would recommend it because I think it is brilliant and I'm sure it will last ages because of the amount of product in the jar. However, if you really don't want to spend the money I'm sure there are some 'make your own lip scrub' recipes online. Obviously, applying balm afterwards is a must to achieve full softness, so after the short lip scrubbing process I generously apply the lip balm all over my lips! I'm not sure how much the lip balm I use costs, but I think you can easily get it from Boots, Superdrug, or your local pharmacy. I love my Carmex lip balm because it feels different to any that I've tried before. When the lip balm is first applied it gives a slight burning feeling, but don't be put off, because shortly afterwards the lip balm becomes completely soothing and your lips feel very soft! I think this product is very effective. I hope you enjoyed reading this post and that it opened your eyes to lip care! (Ha) And maybe you will try the products I have talked about and love them like I do! Feel free to follow me on:http://twitter.com/_watteyhttp://instagram.com/eleanorwattey Eleanor x

Wednesday, 3 April 2013

(Apologies that this post took so long to make an appearance - I kept having technical annoyances)

I love everything about France. The language, the fashion, the culture. And even though I'd been to many beautiful parts of France, My desire had always been to go to the big city of Paris. And now I've had a taste of Paris, I need to go back!

I will tell you all about it...

First Day

We had been travelling all through the night and most of the morning, but that didn't stop us from jumping straight into an event packed day!

First stop was the Fragonard Perfumery which was very beautiful and interesting, as we were told all about perfume; the key places to put perfume on your body, and we took part in an activity where we matched the scents with the picture. I would have loved to buy a perfume, but they were quite expensive and there was so much choice! We then went to 'Le Gallery Lafayette', a huge department store that you really do need lots of time on your hands to be able to look through properly. It is full of beautiful items and all of the designer brands you can think of! Sadly, we only had about an hour to look around, but we made it our goal to go right to the top, and the view was wonderful. You can see for miles. Next stop was 'Le Louvre', a museum full of astonishing artwork; paintings, statues, and exhibitions. The vivid paintings on the ceilings of battle scenes and celebrations captivated me. I also saw the hugely famous Monna Lisa. There is so much to take in. And I would definitely recommend people to go here if they visit Paris. I definitely want to go back to 'Le Louvre'. Like I said, we had an event packed day, and we weren't finished even after exploring the Louvre for hours. We finally arrived at the Eiffel Tower! It is enormous. We were all determined to walk to the top, but, it was extremely windy that day meaning the pinnacle of the tower was off limits. We did walk to the first floor, however. And once I had walked up to the first floor, I realised this was high enough for me! It was terrifying, yet, wonderful to be so high up. The view was extraordinary, but it was so scary! I am amazed at the people who built the Eiffel Tower, how much effort they must have put in, and the fact that they built it so high up!

The Eiffel Tower

Me all wrapped up warm, and terrified!

Second Day
Another full day! We got up early and after nosing around Carrefour, we went straight to 'Chateau de Versailles'. The hallways were lined with statues, but big white sheets covered them. It was all quite eerie, actually. The place was beautiful, though. There were huge rooms with artistically painted walls and ceilings, and there was a lot of history to go with it. I found the bedrooms of past monarchs fascinating, yet, creepy.

The gates of Chateau Versailles

We then went on a boat trip around Paris, where we saw the landmarks of Paris from more of a relaxed perspective, as we could just sit there taking pictures as the boat went past. I enjoyed the boat trip very much despite the fact that it was freezing cold!

After the boat trip, we were allowed to walk along the lovers' lock bridge, where people write or engrave messages to their lovers on a padlock and throw away the keys intothe water below. I just think it is so romantic, and I even saw a couple putting a lock onto the bridge together!

Some of the locks on the bridge

The exterior of Notre Dame Cathedral

Just before stopping for dinner in a Parisian restaurant, we went to Notre Dame Cathedral which is so beautiful. There were huge queues to get in, as there was a service being held to honour the new Pope, but we all managed to get in! The ceilings were so tall and the atmosphere was incredible. Third Day

My last day in Paris! We went to the Arc de Triomphe and had some funny group photos together underneath it! Again, this monument was huge! There seems to be a reccuring theme in Paris. After looking at the Arc de Triomphe, we were allowed to walk down the Champs-Élysées and go into the shops.

Afterwards, we walked all the way up to the Sacre Coeur which is so high that you can see the whole of Paris. This was another spectacular view. We were also allowed to look around the little shops down the cobbled streets, I bought loads of souvenirs on this day. And after a wonderful weekend in Paris, it was sadly time to go home.

I hope you have enjoyed this post about my experience in Paris, and I hope that maybe I have given you a good idea of what some of the places in Paris are like!

I love Paris, and I want to go back as many times as possible! It has given me some of the best experiences and memories to treasure.

Thursday, 21 March 2013

Hello! Sorry it's been a while, but I thought I'd share with you the details of my trip to Paris! It was quite a short trip, but we managed to fit loads in and I had a great time! Needless to say, I fell in love with Paris.

So, one of the most exciting things for me was shopping in Paris, and that is what I'm going to talk about in this post.

The beauty products:

My first purchase in Paris was something I bought from the Gallery Lafayette, which is a huge department store full of big brands and unique souvenirs. I've always wanted a staple lipstick from Paris, so what better time to buy one than this?! Although we have MAC here in Wales, I will insist on calling this lipstick 'my parisian lipstick'. It is a gorgeous pink 'amplified creme lipstick', and it is in the colour 'girl about town A72'. I wore it around Paris the next day. It stays on for a long time and the colour is bold and fabulous!

The beautiful Gallery Lafayette

My next purchases were from Carrefour, a massive hypermarket chain retailers. I looked around the makeup stores and finally found Kiko Cosmetics. I'd never bought anything from Kiko before, but heard good reviews and thought I'd give them a try! I bought a Colour Party Palette Wet and Dry Eyeshadow in Holi Vibrations (pictured below with lipstick). I find the colours in the palette very fun and different to what I usually wear, and I must mention that the packaging is amazing! I also bought 30 Days Extension - Daily Treatment Mascara, as I have short eyelashes that I am desperate to make look longer, plus the fact that I was in need of a new mascara. The products are very good quality, and quite inexpensive.
I then went into a typical French pharmacy store in Carrefour and bought a two pack of Bioderma Makeup Remover for 15€! I thought this was a great deal, considering the product is great quality and can be expensive in some places. I have been using the Bioderma ever since I got back from Paris, and I can honestly say that I would recommend it to everyone, it has not irritated my sensitive skin in any way!

Swatches of lipstick and eyeshadows

The last place I bought beauty products from was Sephora! I could have spent ages in Sephora, just picking and choosing different products, but unfortunately I had limited time. So, to make it short and sweet, I bought an Urban Decay De Slick Oil Control MakeUp Setting Spray. I have wanted a makeup setting spray for a long time because my face often becomes oily and my makeup fades away throughout the day, and like a lot of the other products I have talked about in this post, I have been using this since I came back from Paris and it has not disappointed! It dries pretty quickly once sprayed on and doesn't mess up your fresh makeup, also, it doesn't make your face feel stiff in any way.
I must say I am delighted with the beauty products I bought whilst in Paris.

Now onto the non beauty items I bought whilst in Paris! I generally just bought things from little Parisian souvenir shops...

I love the typical black beret that the French seem to be known for, so I just had to buy one for only 4€ when I saw them all lined up neatly outside a shop. I love it and its simplicity, and I'm sure it will fit in nicely with many outfits I will wear in the future!
I also bought a t-shirt, which I think is really versatile as it can be worn with long bottoms, shorts, or skirts and can be worn with layers on top or on its own! I also love that the t-shirt is grey, so it won't clash, and it has an awesome University of Paris logo on it.

I also bought a small Eiffel Tower key-ring and a French post card which I think are really cute little memoirs from the trip.
Lastly, I bought some tasty macaroons which were gone in a heartbeat once I opened them when I got home. They were so pretty and absolutely delicious! I can't wait to get my hands on some more!

Well, there you go, that's what I spent my money on whilst in Paris (except for the gifts I bought... and the random bottles of water... and the croissants).
My next post will be about what I did during my time in Paris!

Tuesday, 12 March 2013

I was tagged to do this post by my lovely friend Eleri from buttonsand-bows.blogspot.co.uk, check out her blog, she's new to blogging like me and I enjoy reading her posts so much! I'm sure you will too.

Rules-

You must copy and paste these rules onto your post when you write it. It doesn't take too long!

You must thank the person who tagged you at the start of your post (link their blog as well) -follow them if you're feeling nice!, and then at the end of your post state who you tag, and then comment on their blog on their latest post to let them know you tagged them, and link your post so they can see what to do.

Title your post 'Procrastinating Beauty Blogger TAG!' so everyone knows what it is about.

HAVE FUN :)

Name a beauty routine that you rarely do-

Deep condition my hair. Don't get me wrong, I always wash and condition my hair! But I hardly ever get round to deep conditioning even though I know my hair needs it sometimes!

Is washing your make-up brushes something you regularly do?

I do wear makeup often, and even though I'm in Comprehensive School and don't have much time, I will always wear a bit of makeup, and i'll wear even more makeup on the weekends/special occasions. Because of this, I do always try to keep up to date with washing my brushes, however, I do have a tendency to leave them for a while without a wash. I really must start washing them more often.

How long will you last with chipped nail polish?

Unfortunately, I hardly ever have painted nails because of stupid school rules! However, whenever I'm out of school I always wear nail polish and if it even starts to get slightly chipped, I always take it off (usually by picking it off! Bad, I know) and put on a fresh coat of polish.

How long do you put off buying/replacing a beauty or nail polish product even if you need it? (i.e purchasing a new topcoat, or a new foundation etc.)

I tend to notice straight away if my foundation bottle is running low or I'm starting to hit pan on a blusher, and I always try to buy another one promptly before I have chance to freak out about it. I am usually very organised about it.

What is your worst beauty habit?

Like Eleri, I do feel I am quite a perfectionist with beauty. But, I will say that I have a bad habit of sometimes not bothering to put a clear base coat and top coat of nail polish when I'm applying it.

Name something non-beauty related that you put off doing all the time?

Okay, so I used to be so good with doing all my homework straight away, but now I just put it off for as long as I can. It makes me stressy when it all piles up, but I just always put it off... Tut tut, I'll never learn.

When going out somewhere, do you leave getting ready until the last minute or not?

I really enjoy getting ready, so I get ready as early as is acceptable to, depending on what time I'm going out. Also, I take quite a long time to get ready, so the earlier the better. Though, It seems no matter what time I choose to get ready, I always end up having to rush towards the end!

Can you commit to spending bans?

I do find it very hard, as I'm always trawling through online shops and longing to buy new things. Then again, I hate parting with my money when I spend it on stuff I later realise wasn't needed. But, like Eleri, I've been saving for my trip to Paris, so I have spent a bit of money on essentials, but I've been thinking very hard about what I actually need to buy and what I just want to buy. Anyway, I'm sure I'll have no money left after Paris! (I'm planning on blogging about my Paris trip soon).

How organised are your make-up and nail polish collections?

It's somewhat organised. I do know where all of my makeup is, so that's a good thing, but I am planning on finding a place in my room to properly store my makeup and organise it soon. I also have my nail polishes stored in a pot, with my staple nail polishes on top! I do think some serious organising is on the cards.

What is the longest amount of time you have gone without writing a blog post?

I am new to blogging, so I don't have many posts, but it is important to me to try and blog as often as possible, to build up a really fun and interesting blog page!

I TAG anyone who reads this blog post! And If you decide to do it, please comment the link to your blog so I can read all of your answers. I'm interested to know! :)

Friday, 8 March 2013

So, yesterday night I went to a relative's 50th Wedding Anniversary do. It was an enjoyable night (except for the drunk-ness of some) and I had a good few laughs.

For me, the party was last minute, as I only found out the day before that I would be going! So, of course I had to find the right outfit for the night.

For my outfit; I wore a black velvet top (m&s) and a black skirt in a skater style (asos), I decided on this because I thought the dark colours would be suitable for the party that was in the night. Also, instead of simply wearing a dress, I thought that a bit of mix and match with the materials of the top and skirt would be a fun look.
To add a bit of colour to the look and to cover my legs, I wore a pair of plum coloured tights (new look).
I'm a short girl and it was a party, so I wore a pair of black wedges (new look) on my feet. I think these made the outfit more party appropriate.
Lastly, I wore a silver, spiky necklace (new look) to make the outfit less plain. I really love this necklace because it looks good with a lot of outfits!

Thank you for reading, and I hope you think I chose wisely for the event!

Sunday, 3 March 2013

Hello! I'm Eleanor. I'm fifteen. I live in South Wales, but I want to get out into the world and travel when I'm older.

Blogging is something that has appealed to me for quite a while, so I've decided to make this blog because I want to express myself, and my thoughts on different things such as; Beauty, Fashion, and Travel, and just share general parts of my life and my opinions with people who are interested.

Personally, I love to hear what others have to say about things, so I thought I'd try it myself!

I hope you will enjoy reading my future blogs and find what I have to say about things interesting, and I hope my blog will help you get to know me and my interests better!